


Like A Bad Sunburn

by AkisMusicBox



Category: Skip Beat!
Genre: Beaches, CW: alcohol, F/M, Filming a movie, Hikaru to the rescue, Kyoko has a hard day, Okinawa, On Set, Which makes Ren's day terrible too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:28:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23899021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkisMusicBox/pseuds/AkisMusicBox
Summary: Hikaru dabbles in acting on a movie filmed in Okinawa. He gets a glimpse into just how strange Kyoko's and Ren's relationship is.
Relationships: Ishibashi Hikaru & Tsuruga Ren, Mogami Kyoko/Tsuruga Ren
Comments: 14
Kudos: 111
Collections: Oh Brother! Hikaru Ishibashi Appreciation





	Like A Bad Sunburn

Hikaru had never considered himself a lucky person, but recently he realized his luck had just been waiting for him until now. Through a bizarre twist of luck, Hikaru was encouraged to audition for a movie that would film in Okinawa. He was a performer, for sure, a presenter and interviewer, but being anybody but himself was a stretch. He was able to stretch himself just enough to actually be given the role.

He was even luckier when he realized that Kyoko had also been given a role. His mind had run wild with the opportunity to spend time with her, on set, far away from Tokyo. _A surfing movie means sun, swimsuits, salt spray... even the song writes itself honestly._ It almost made him giddy -- this was going to be a font of inspiration to bring back to the band. _Shinichi and Yuusei will just have to take care of themselves for a month._

He initially thought he would have plenty of time to hang out with her as well and show her what he was really about. Maybe then, maybe once she'd spent enough time with him to understand his genuine interest in her, would she agree to go out with him.

Those hopes were dashed, however, when they arrived and Ren Tsuruga was also on set. Kyoko and Tsuruga seemed to have some sort of inexplicable bond, constantly worrying over one another, glued to the hip. She claimed "senpai", but Hikaru wasn't that naive. They clearly weren't dating either, because if they were they would actually attempt to hide how much one was concerned for the other. He would pass her sunscreen constantly. She would grab his bentos and scold him for not eating. Things that any couple would do, and therefore, not do if they were trying to keep it a secret.

It had hurt at first, but after a few weeks passed, Hikaru couldn't be too upset. Tsuruga had taken Hikaru under his wing. Hikaru had never crafted his own character before and Tsuruga was happy to help him through the process. When Hikaru had explained that he'd never felt comfortable being anyone but himself, it had made Tsuruga laugh. A boisterous, gut-busting laugh that Hikaru didn't know was possible coming out of a consummate professional. "If only more people were like you," Tsuruga had said breathlessly. "Myself included."

The comment lingered on Hikaru like a bad sunburn -- not that Tsuruga had scorched him, but as an irritation, he couldn't find the remedy for. But after that, Tsuruga seemed to lighten up a bit around Hikaru, so Hikaru couldn't find it in him to press any further. Instead, he just tried to retool his focus on absorbing this amazing experience and prying Tsuruga for whatever imagery he could get. "I have a real job to get back to when this is over," Hikaru said. "I've gotta mine this experience for whatever it'll give me."

The third week of shooting brought on nearly constant beach scenes. The breeze was gentle, the sun hidden behind sheer clouds, and the sands tolerable so every moment was milked to get the shots they needed. Kyoko, in particular, was being pushed, in scene after scene, and her generally inexhaustible well of energy dropped further and further after each one.

They only stopped filming when it was too dark to see. When Hikaru drug himself toward the cabana where their evening bentos were, he saw Tsuruga, still in black swim trunks, standing over a seated Kyoko. His tone was clipped and urgent. Her expression was vacant as she sat there, hands folded in her lab, head cocked to watch him as if he were an oddity. The glow from the strings of lights around the cabana made it clear that she was flushed from head to toe. The bathing suit didn't help the effect either -- a white, halter-topped bikini did little to protect her from the sun. Hikaru slowed his advance when he saw Tsuruga crouch in front of her. He reached for her face, but she pulled back ever so slightly. He retracted his hand instantly and tried to give her a bento. She took it and stared at it for a moment before standing and giving him a quick nod. Then, her bare feet drug along the sand back towards the hotel.

Tsuruga cupped his mouth with his hand and closed his eyes for the moment. Then, he stood, looked at the bentos, and walked away. Not towards the hotel, but back to the darkness of the beach.

Hikaru hadn't been noticed yet. And as much as he was growing to like Tsuruga, he wasn't sure if he was quite ready to be his advisor in Kyoko-related matters. _I'll make sure she gets back to the hotel, at least._

* * *

Hikaru had kept his distance, but once he ascertained she made it onto the hotel's elevator, he slipped off to the hotel bar. It all felt too pristine for his comfort level -- pale bamboo floors and marble bar tops would show stains in a heartbeat. The places he preformed were dim, dark, and sticky. _Or used to preform, before I became a proper sellout._ However, he spotted a few crew members at the bar, one of them a sound engineer who waved him over. "They moved back Happy Hour for us!" the engineer said, holding up a beer in an absurdly tall and thin glass. "These free drinks ain't gonna drink themselves, Ishibashi."

Hikaru chucked. "I better get to work!" He took a seat next to the engineer. He could see the entrance to the hotel from his seat, red carpet leading straight to the main elevator bank. _I can keep an eye out for him from here._

Or, he thought he would have, but when the crew started ordering whiskey instead of beer, the edges of the world got a little fuzzy. He nearly jumped out of his seat when Yashiro appeared behind, out of breath, and a bead of sweat rolling down his face.

"Ishibashi-kun!" Yashiro said. "I need to ask you a favor." The agent was dressed in a floral-printed, baggy shirt and grey shorts, which made the briefcase that he fished out of all the more strange to Hikaru. "There were some re-writes to the script, and I'm helping pass out the changes so people can review them. I've been looking for Ren all over the place and finally received a message from him that he was going for a run, so I could just let myself into his room and leave it by the front door. However, I've still got six scripts to deliver so..." He handed Hikaru a script and a keycard. "Room three eleven. Please. I'll owe you a thousand favors if you do this for me."

Hikaru took them, but still asked, "Why me?"

Yashiro snorted. "He's rather private, so he'd not be happy for me to have anyone enter his room without his knowledge. However, you two seemed to have bonded, so I'm fairly certain I'll escape any retribution."

"Alright," Hikaru said and downed the rest of his whiskey. It was a mistake because it scalded his throat. He coughed and then gave a quick wave to the remaining crew members at the bar. He turned back to Yashiro. "Gotta start thinking up favors. Can they be Porsche-related?"

Yashiro chuckled. "Absolutely not," he said and they parted ways. Hikaru went to the elevator banks realized that it took him longer than it should have to decipher Ren's room was on the third floor. When he got into the elevator, he coached himself. _Whatever you do, get in and out quickly. Tipsy-karu does not need to rummage around in a celebrity's hotel room. Especially one that massive, literally and figuratively._

Once he arrived at the room, he knocked twice. _Stupid. He's not in there._ He then inserted the key and let himself in. The room was dark all except for the glow emanating from the bathroom. A growl that sounded distinctly like "Go away," came from that direction as well, and perhaps any other time, Hikaru would have listened. Instead, he threw the script on the end table next to the door and stumbled his way to the light. "Tsuruga?" he called. He peered into the bathroom.

Floor to ceiling white was nearly blinding but clear as day Hikaru saw Tsuruga curled in the empty bathtub. Curled, because even though his bare feet were pressed against the far edge of the tub, his legs were bent. He leaned his head against the bathroom wall, clutching a whiskey bottle between his legs. He was still wearing his swim trunks.

Tsuruga turned his head and glared at Hikaru through a veil of damp hair. "I said 'go away,'" he grumbled.

Hikaru couldn't control his eyes going wide, astonished. By no means was the concept of having a drink in the tub foreign to Hikaru, but Ren Tsuruga? And straight out of the bottle? Hikaru found a glass on the floor with a few ice cubes slowly melting next to them. Hikaru picked up the glass and found it fractured, but still intact.

Ren snorted. "Lost that." He picked up the bottle and gave it a little wave. "More efficient."

Hikaru put the cracked glass in the tiny trash can next to the toilet. "Gone for good." He was way out of his depths now, he knew. But all he could do, all he'd ever been able to rely on in his life was his ability to take things one step at a time. Hikaru held a hand out. "Mind if I?"

Expression still scrunched, Tsuruga extended his arm, only to tug back slightly. "You gonna give it back?"

_Not if I can help it._ "I'm not a fool. I couldn't keep it from you if I tried." Tsuruga smirked at that and gave him the bottle. Hikaru took a drink.

The fuzziness he felt couldn't make him doubt that this whiskey was even smoother than what Hikaru had been drinking down at the bar. There was a smoke to it that didn't burn his insides. It was way too pricey to be drinking in sorrow, that was clear. "I was told you'd be out running."

Tsuruga shrugged. "Got distracted. Or maybe I meant metaphorically."

Hikaru took a deep breath and held the bottle a bit tighter. "Something wrong with Kyoko-chan?"

His dour expression fell. "She won't talk to me. Won't tell me what's wrong. Won't let me take her to a doctor." His eyes lowered. "All day, she pushed me away. Films a take. Pushes away. Films. Pushes."

Hikaru was able to set the bottle on the bathroom counter without eliciting protests. "It was a big day for her. Maybe she needed to rest? Gas in the tank?"

His eyes closed. "Talking to her is how I refill mine, though. It's clearly not the same for her."

_You and me both, buddy_ was what he wanted to say, but something nagged at him. "Was everything okay before that?"

Tsuruga gave a quick nod before pausing and then shrugging. "Whose to say? Everything is complicated between us."

Hikaru could have probably guessed that. "That sucks."

Tsuruga nodded. "I thought I'd have a chance here. To slowly unravel the truth her. To talk to her." His eyes closed. "No distractions. Just eat, act, and talk. Eat, act, and talk."

_Lucky bastard_ was what he wanted to say. _You've been doing that for the past two weeks, what's the problem?_ Except, Hikaru remembered that Tsuruga had to film early that morning, so Hikaru and Kyoko ate together. Well, he ate, and she drank tea as she reviewed the script.

"Sucks to not get to eat breakfast together," was all he offered, lamely.

"Or lunch. She was busy."

And then, it fell into place. "Tsuruga... did she eat today?"

That caused his eyes to open and look at Hikaru as if he was stupid. "Do you recall who you're speaking of?"

"Do you?" Hikaru retorted, a bit sharper than he intended. "An up-and-coming, young actress is asked to spend all day in a bathing suit to help further her career, and you don't think she's the least bit self-conscious?"

Tsuruga sat up a bit. "What?"

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "She didn't eat today! She was trying to look slim for the film!"

Tsuruga's eyes snapped open properly. Anger radiated off of him, and Hikaru almost feared getting burned. "You think she's overweight?"

Hikaru held his hands up." Absolutely not! But camera angles aren't always flattering! And did you see how tiny that suit is?"

Tsuruga put a hand on his face and nodded. "You're telling me her behavior today was from too much sun and not enough food?"

Hikaru gave Tsuruga a blank stare. "You skipped one meal today and it landed you in a tub spooning a bottle of whiskey. Pot, meet kettle."

Tsuruga barked a laugh. Finally, some lightness came to his expression. He stood. "I should take some food to her room then. Tell her she looks beautiful."

Hikaru stood and blocked the door. "Hell no. You're half-naked and drunk. What kinda message are you gonna send?"

Tsuruga stroked his chin for a moment, then pointed at Hikaru. "Fair. Then I need to... need to..."

"Talk to the cinematographer and the director," Hikaru finished. "Have them make it clear that they'll only shoot from flattering angles. And you, sir, can be the Food Czar for once."

Tsuruga studied Hikaru for a moment. "You're fairly wise, Ishibashi."

Hikaru shook his head. "I am older than you, you know. One would hope I'd be."

Tsuruga stepped out of the tub. "Fair enough. Then how about... I send her some anonymous room service telling her what a great job she did. Some dessert, something extravagant and sweet."

Hikaru shrugged. "Fortune favors the bold, sometimes."

Tsuruga smiled. It was an unpolished, crooked one, but Hikaru could feel the heart coming from it. "Good. And I'll order us a pizza." He clasped Hikaru on the shoulder.

"Us?!" Hikaru asked.

"Oh yes," he said, mild-mannered tone growing serious. "If you'll bring me script rewrites the evening before shooting, you are obliged to help me learn them."

_Thanks, Yashiro._ "Don't blame me if your performance sucks from practicing with an amateur like me. Get a real actor, get Kyoko in here."

Tsuruga laughed, a slow one that grew and grew and grew. Hikaru couldn't help himself, he laughed as well.


End file.
